2010 Race Schedule

View 2010 Race Schedule in a larger map

Here is the projected race schedule for the season! Each pin has the race details.

Let's see how it goes.

A taste of Night Riding...

I went out to fight the "skin-walkers" solo around 7pm. It was a bit chilly, 35 degrees and it seemed darker than usual. I jammed to the tunes from my iPod to drown out my fears of blood-thirsty coyotes or other sharp-toothed mammals looming in the dark. All was good until Michael Jackson's thriller song kicked in...(I had a buddy tell me the "skin-walkers" come out after 7! eep.)

I had borrowed different night riding lights from a buddy to compare the difference to what I already own. The differences: First, I had two lights this time, one mounted to my helmet with a second on the handlebars. My original setup only had a helmet light. I think I like this dual light setup and will have two lights for next years 24 hours of Moab.

I just took a few minutes of the video from the entire ride( I don't want to you to die of boredom so don't expect anything thrilling). When your watching the video, the camera is mounted behind my helmet light (you will notice the off/on green light). Take note of the two lights moving around and some of the few snow spots on the ground!!

24 Hours of Moab

Nothing is a total failure; and all education has a cost are my life's mantra. Learning about the various aspects of the race I believe require a couple iterations to really learn the basics. Furthermore, I believe you will learn new things each year.

What did we learn? First, I am thankful for the friends and family that decided to help support the race. We learned that the race is not only about the racers but very much the support staff. There are a variety of roles that are required outside the racers to make this successful. Rather than go into the details, I will summarize that the race support of a team needs to have some management and defined roles. Second, the various training, equipment, food, and patterns of behavior for the racers are more clearly defined.

The bottom line, I cannot wait until next year! Check out some of the pictures below!

Below the entire crew; my cool company Mercury Payment System sponsored our team and we in return broadcast our name. We also considered how Mercury Payment System could involve the merchants at the event to help land strategic accounts elsewhere. We even made the company blog!

Here is the link to the company's blog. http://mindset.mercurypay.com/?p=306

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Notice how my head is hanging a little lower. This was after the majority of the climbing and i was resting my lower back.

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Tyler, looking like a pro whipping around the corner.

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This is after the same climb, Tyler looking strong.

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If you click to get the larger image, look closely at the loose sand. This can be brutal while on the bike. The route was a combination of hard pack and suddenly you hit deep soft sand. Maintaining balance in the sand while pedaling was something new for Tyler and I. Yes, this was some pro chick in front of me, I had to pass her! and I did :)

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The race was a La Mans start. This is where everyone starts at a start line and runs to the bikes!





In conclusion of the year...


I want to thank everyone for their good attitudes and team spirit!

Tyler, honestly, you totally made me proud this year. Starting from the early years Xterras to finishing up the season with your first endurance race. Your dedication of learning all aspects of training from open water swimming to mental endurance when the things become cold, dark, and tiring brought many hidden tears to my eyes. All season long you you held a dedication not common amongst teenagers: waking up early to trail run, swim during my lunches and bike ride during the workdays and weekends. Finally, the endurance training rides started when you were in High School; maintaining all A's, taking college classes as a Junior, having girlfriends, yet you still trained. You are totally awesome and you are just planting the seeds to your opportunities of the future! The world is your oyster.

Moab - warmup.

This weekend we drove to Moab, UT to complete a practice run before the big race this coming weekend, 10 and 11th of October.

It was a bit of an adventure; I missed a turn and ended up adding 2 hours to my overall drive. :) But, we got to see the beautiful country on the way to Telluride!

We ended up camping in the Sand Flats east of Moab. It was a bit crowded for my personal taste, but the accessibility and cost was worth it!

Part of the goals this weekend were as follows:

1) Sucessfully pull a pop-top camper to Moab via our Jeep.

2) Setup the camper.

3) Spend the night in the camper.

4) Pre-Ride the 24 hours Moab route before the race!

Well, all was accomplished except for #4. We did however ride on the Slick Rock trail near our camp site.

We will just have to adapt for the race; I am sure we will be fine.

Below, my three children. Aren't their faces beautiful!?

Edward Abbey would roll over in his grave seeing the cars out here! Beautiful sunset with the clouds.

Inside our new home!

Didn't Rebecca tell you we sold our townhome and downgraded?

Our camp spot. Ryan from work is in the background; it is also his red Jeep. We took both cars. The Jeep pulled the pop-up camper and the Element carried the bikes.


We were chased out of Moab early due to some approaching storms! Here we are getting out of dodge!




Next week, here we come!

24 Moab Training

Tyler and I are entering the 24 Hour Moab with two other riders from Mercury. I am thinking we will be "Team Mercury". The basics of the race; your team completes as many 15 mile laps as possible within a 24 hour period. This means night riding!

Below is our schedule of training to handle the event.

Tuesday - Faster anaerobic pace for 15 miles on our geared racing bikes.
Wednesday - Slower strength single speed riding 15 miles.
Thursday - 15-20 miles easy ride on geared racing bikes.

The above is fairly static from week to week leading to the race. Saturdays however, slowly increment to increase our endurance (time in the saddle, and overall miles)

Saturday - Every Saturday we do 15 mile laps in our local trail system called Horse Gulch. This last Saturday we completed 3 laps of 15 miles for 4 hours and 45 minutes in the saddle and a total of 45 miles. Next Saturday we are doing 4 laps. I pyramid this until we do 5 laps, then drop back down to 2 laps for a recover and continue to build back up until the race day.

The Saturday route consists- Sonic TH, Horse Gulch rd, Meadow, Telegraph, Sidewinder, Cowboy, SouthRim, Carbon, River Trail, Sonic TH.

The highlight of the trip is climbing over telegraph (which is always a nice challenge to conquer on any ride) The first 1.6 miles is the steepest aspect of the route (1000 ft of elevation in the first 1.6 miles) and the last 100 yards is a ball breaking climb to a nice overlook.

This last Saturday I felt weak from the beginning; however, Tyler, was a hammer, he cleared Telegraph on laps 2 and 3! I was thrilled with his performance!

One day very soon, I will eating the dust from his rear tire.

Saturday's training ride

Tyler and I stayed in the Gulch this weekend since Rebecca had her first Saturday off in 6 or so months. Her new schedule is M-F, 8-5. Hooray.

Since she had Saturdays off, I was allotted 2 hours for a ride! We rode up from home, up Telegraph, Cowboy, South Rim, Carbon, Crites, Anasazi, Meadow, home. It was approximately 18 miles and 2000ft climbing with no stopping! We were trying to simulate race conditions for this weekend's upcoming Xterra race in Boulder.

Profile of the route.

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Topo of the training route.Telegraph is approximately where the 7550,7600,7500 ft labels are.

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Rebecca ripping through the Gulch

Still having fun with the video camera, here is some footage of Rebecca finishing up the Meadow loop.

Jones - Pinkerton - Dutch - Hermosa

Tyler and I mountain biked with Jim, Baird, and Walker today on a killer 20 mile trail(See subject title for the trail names). We peaked out at roughly 10300ft. I actually really enjoyed the climb up Jones; Pinkerton climb on the other hand was a gut check! Eventually, we were able to get some downhill and I apologize to the cows that we disturbed as we buzzed down the mountain.

The first 8 miles was approximately 3500 feet of climbing and it was not technical; instead, it was relentless and never ending! I loved every minute of it. The Garmin reported 3713 of total ascent for the entire 20 miles. I used an application known as SportTracks to gather the data.

Tyler and I we were a bit exhausted before even beginning today's ride due to the heavier week of training for next week's Xterra. But, it was character building. We eventually ended up with smiles upon completion!

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It's official - Rebecca is a Mountain Biker

Rebecca successfully climbed Horse Gulch Road and completed the inner meadow loop like a pro! This was her 2nd trip and a quote from her was "I want to do that again". Unfortunately, it was 8:30pm and the sun was setting.

Here are some pictures of her single track experience showing off her Kona 4 Dawg Deluxe. The 4 means 4 inches of front and rear travel regarding her suspension.



Look at the concentration on her face!


Before we began some of the fun downhill in the meadow loop, she hyper-hydrates and reflects on the new skills she learned.


She did absolutely great! With pony tails, smiles, and a great attitude. (What more can I ask for) She was a real trooper and I foresee her accomplishing more than she ever thought possible! What happened to the Ohio Rebecca I once knew who would never think of mountain biking! ;)

I told her in a recent email..."You're an official mountain biker, now prepare for white-knuckled hang-on-for-your-life rides where the laughter is fueled by lunacy"..

Training Snapshot - MTB Ride

A snapstop of our mountain biking. Tyler and I decided to ride this morning at 5:45 and hit a local trail that starts blocks from our house. It actually felt great to get out in the morning before work. Once again, missing the heat and noon rains.



The average pace seems relatively consistent regardless of the climbing.. hrmmm


Here is the topo.I ended up riding back on the road for a mile or two due to getting to the office at a reasonable time. The trail is in the Gulch system:

Hermosa Trail 15June09

A few weeks ago Tyler and I did an out and back starting a lower Hermosa TH. I had fun with the editing and forgot to upload the video.